


the same old love

by byeolbit



Category: VIXX
Genre: Gen, Implied Friendship, an evening in Hongdae, contains a brief discussion about harrassment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-13
Updated: 2019-03-13
Packaged: 2019-11-17 15:12:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18101045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/byeolbit/pseuds/byeolbit
Summary: It's just one night in a random club in Hongdae. Hongbin thinks that's okay for a change.





	the same old love

The bass beats reached him before the strobe lights did. Hongbin pulled his hoodie up, and made his way through the crowd, apologizing as he bumped into people. The club wasn't as crowded as the doorway and he didn't care as long as there was place at the bar. He found a stool and took a seat, ID in hand because he knew the bartenders always flagged him for how young he looked.

He hated his face some times. And he particularly hated the flower boy look he always had on. Fuck. He may have been teased for looking Mexican but at least he looked normal before. 

"Hello sir. what can I get you?" a female voice asked. Hongbin looked up to find a new bartender as opposed to the usual ones. Then again this was a Tuesday and not the weekend. That was bad news. It was usually the women who recognized him. 

"I'll just have vodka shots please" Hongbin replied, not looking up for longer than necessary. 

"I'll have to ask you for an ID before I can serve you alcohol" she told him. Hongbin sighed and held up his driver's license. The bartender took it and he closed his eyes and swore mentally, waiting for the inevitable recognition and reaction. She stared at him for while and then handed him his ID back. The lack of reaction surprised Hongbin who raised an eyebrow as he took his ID. 

"Would you like to start a tab or pay per drink?" she asked him, keeping her voice neutral. Hongbin could swear she recognized him and this lack of reaction was troublesome.

"I'll start a tab" he told her. "And I think I'll just go with a wine cocktail first if you have any tonight." 

"We have red and white wine Sangria, some standard Cobblers, Juleps and you can make custom orders with schnapps or any other wine you would like" she told him. 

"What would you recommend?" he asked, feeling a little lost but not wanting to show it. He didn't always frequent nightclubs. And when he did, it was always the elder ones who ordered for him. 

"Well, I think I can set you up with something custom" she said, trying to gauge his reaction. 

"Go right ahead" he told her, leaning against the counter top. She nodded and turned around, picking up various bottles and adding liquids to the cocktail mixer.

"That's a Star Gazer. Some light rum to make it stronger. It'll be ten thousand won" she told him. 

"Add it to the tab" he agreed, before taking a tentative sip. The cocktail was pineapple based but the bitterness of the rum and white wine had not been eclipsed by it. It went well with the lemon and salt frosting on the rim and Hongbin wondered if he could get more of it later. 

"Is this normally on the menu?" he asked her, making small talk because he really didn't want to think about other things. 

"Yeah it is. But not very popular" she admitted. 

"Can't imagine why" he said, sipping through it. It seemed decent enough. But then again no one would come to a bar in Hongdae for wine. He'd never seen anyone order anything weaker than rum except for beer during barbecues. 

"Call me if you need anything" she said, before leaving to attend to other customers. Hongbin shot a quick text to his manager saying he would be back at the dorm by 3 in the morning and not to wait up for him. After a moment of consideration, he lied and added that he was shopping in the late night markets in Hongdae and would call if their was any trouble but he didn't expect any. He didn't realize it but he had sipped through the entire cocktail and he regretted it instantly. Maybe he would just order another one.

"I'll have a French 75" he yelled over to her. She raised a thumbs up, serving to the other customers before going to make his drink. 

"I think that's an excellent choice" a woman next to him said. 

"I'm sorry?" he asked, taken back by her sudden appearance. He lowered his hoodie, not wanting to be recognized or frankly continue the conversation. 

"You have a good taste in cocktails. My name's Seo Injung. What's yours?" the woman asked leaning in. 

"Uh..." Hongbin trailed off, leaning further away. He wasn't an idiot but he really wasn't in the mood for flirtation tonight. He looked over to the bartender who caught his eye and immediately understood the situation.

"Here's the water you wanted Mr Oh. Where did your girlfriend go?" the bartender said out loud, faking an innocent look. 

"Girlfriend?" Injung asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"Mr Oh came with his girlfriend. He's been ordering for her all night" the bartender bluffed. Hongbin nodded, going along with the lie. 

"Right. Hopefully she'll be back soon" Injung said, clearly not taking well to the information. She grabbed her drink and left, letting Hongbin breathe easily. 

"Thanks" he told the bartender. 

"No problem. Happens all the time. Usually to a woman though" she said offhandedly. 

"Some times we get harrassed as well" Hongbin grumbled. 

"You're not one of those Not all Men supporters are you?" she asked, her nose scrunching up in distaste. 

"No. Thank god for that. I have two elder sisters. I understand the kind of harassment women go through. I just wanted to say that men went through the same too some times" Hongbin defended. 

"Point taken. Do you want another drink?" she asked, pointing to his empty glass. 

"Something stronger" he agreed. 

"You might want to go slow. Do you have an emergency contact on your phone that I can call?" she asked him. 

"Yeah. His name is Cha Hakyeon. He's number three on speed dial" Hongbin told her. 

"Not your manager?" she asked, mixing in some vodka and orange juice. 

"I don't have a death wish" he told her. Then he did a double take, looking up at her.

"I did see your ID you know" the bartender reminded him. 

"It's not that obvious" he argued. 

"I'm just that good. But your secret is safe with me. Club policy. We get more run away idols than you'd believe" she said casually. 

"Run away idols?" he asked her. 

"Yup. I could tell you but I'd have to kill you" she joked. Another customer called her and she excused herself before Hongbin could reply. He shook his head and took a swig of a vodka shot. One down and five to go. He debated dancing because he was starting to feel the music. But the crowd had started to thin since it was almost one am and it would be awkward without a partner. Maybe he should have asked someone else to come along. 

"Any requests for the next drink?" she asked. 

"Just keep surprising me" he told her. 

"You don't normally order your own drinks do you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"Is it that obvious?" he asked her, leaning on an elbow. 

"To a bartender it is. Normally people have a long list of instructions on how I should make their drinks. You aren't as fussy" she told him. 

"It's pathetic isn't it?" he asked, hiding his face in a shot of vodka. 

"Not really. Loads of people never know what to order. I hate the ones who try to tell me what to do. You'd think I was hired for my skills and not my face" she ranted. 

"I know that feeling" he sympathized.

"I thought that a flower boy face was a sort of pre requisite of the industry" she said, coming back after serving a few more customers. This time it was a Cosmopolitan. 

"Not when it starts to define who you are and limit your talents" he told her. The alcohol was starting to get him chatty. Just one more drink he decided, and after that he'd just drink a lot of water to get himself sober. 

"It's a tough life" she agreed. 

"Has that ever happened to you?" he asked her. 

"Being judged by my face? All the time. If I am too pretty, everyone thinks I got something just for that. If I wear too much makeup I am trying too hard and if I don't then no one looks at me because we're all hypocritical about it" she explained. 

"Doesn't it make you frustrated?" he asked her. 

"I've learnt to ignore it" she replied. 

"All the time? It doesn't make you scream mentally?" he asked her. 

"I am screaming mentally all the time. Did something happen today though?" she asked before she was called away yet again. Hongbin took the pause to debate whether he should really continue this conversation. Sure she understood what he felt, but she was a random stranger. The last thing he wanted was all of this written out in some detailed post on some random fan blog. 

"I think I'll try a rum and coke" he told her when she came back. 

"On the rocks?" she asked him and he nodded. He stayed silent, evaluating things he had already told her. What was new? Everyone knew since the Mydol days that he hated being called just good looking but they conveniently ignored it for the public image that Jelpi perpetuated He took a deep swig of the drink. 

"And here I thought you wanted to go home sober" she remarked and he shrugged. She understood that he no longer felt like talking. He turned to look towards the dance floor. He could see the woman from before in her gang of friends. One of them noticed him looking and told her friends of the same. He turned around with a sigh, noting the looks of hate from the women. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. 

"We'll be closing down in half an hour" the bartender told him. 

"It's three already?" Hongbin asked in surprise. 

"Nope. It's half past one. We close by two on weekdays" she told him. Hongbin swore under his breath. 

"Do you want to go all the way or to get something sobering?" she asked him. 

"I'm not that drunk" he told her. 

"No you aren't champ. But if you want to be fine by the time you get back to your dorm I wouldn't actually recommend drinking more" she pointed out. Hongbin regarded her with a look which she met with a level look of her own. 

"Fine. I'll get the sobering stuff" he conceded. She nodded before taking a glass out and pouring something out.

"It's a strong ginger and lime soda. Should wake you up" she said as she pushed the glass to him. She took away the rest of the glasses and also added a plate of fried chicken strips. 

"It's on the house cause I actually pity you" she told him. He scoffed but took a bit all the same. He took a tentative sip of the soda and made a face. 

"I forgot to add that I added a little salt to make it stronger" she said, holding back her laugh. 

"This would wake anyone up on any time of the day" he commented, keeping the glass away. 

"Hence the small glass. Would you like anything else or should I ring up your tab?" she asked him, methodically putting the used containers away. 

"I'm definitely good after this" he said holding up the glass with disdain. She chuckled before handing him the bill. 

"That look good?" she asked. he read through the list, the words being sharper than earlier this night. 

"Yeah" he said, handing the bill back to her. 

"Cash or card?" she asked him. 

"Card" he said taking his wallet out. She pushed the card reader over to him to let him enter his pin before completing the transaction and handing him a copy of the receipt. She did the same for the other customers at the bar while he sipped through the soda. As promised, it did bring him back to reality but it simultaneously felt horrible because exhaustion and a dull headache from the music had set in.

He decided to get a taxi back, too tired to actually wait for a bus and risk being recognized. He finished the food and stood up, his balance thankfully intact. 

"Good night" he told the bartender who seemed pleasantly surprised at his politeness. 

"Good night. Will you make it back okay? Do you need us to call you a cab?" she asked him. 

"I'll be fine. Thank you for tonight though" he told her. In the end, what was done was done. He decided to delegate regret to the time his honesty would blow up in his face as a scandal online. For the moment he would enjoy having someone he could talk to and be understood by. Someone who treated him normal, even if it was just for business.

"My pleasure. Come again whenever you want" she told him. He waved a her, turned around and made his way out of the club, humming along to that Selena Gomez song on play in the background. 

It was only when he had hailed a cab and sat down did he realize that he had forgotten to ask the bartender for her name. He couldn't recall if she wore a name tag or not. He looked out of the window, committing her face to memory. If he saw her again, he would remember to ask for it. His breath fogged the window glass as he leaned against it to look at the dimming city lights go by. He couldn't even remember the reason for turning up in a random club in Hongdae. But he supposed that was okay. He would be back to his stressful life in the morning when his schedules began again.

He'd keep this night for a much needed break.

**Author's Note:**

> This was my first Hongbin story ever, written way back in early 2016. Please be kind (/).(\\)
> 
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/poojamk15?s=09) | [Tumblr](https://vixxscifiwritings.tumblr.com) | [CuriousCat](https://curiouscat.me/poojamk15)


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